


Fascination

by yongbora



Category: Dreamcatcher (Korea Band)
Genre: F/F, but some side siyoo and gahmi, pls dont expect historical accuracy in the slightest im winging it here, vampire stuffs, very sudong focused
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-03
Updated: 2020-07-03
Packaged: 2021-03-04 20:40:50
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,507
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25052551
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yongbora/pseuds/yongbora
Summary: Bora doesn't know much about vampires. But one thing is for certain; they never get captured. So why is this one here, in the castle's dungeon? And, more importantly, why can't Bora stay away?
Relationships: Han Dong | Handong/Kim Bora | SuA
Comments: 8
Kudos: 47
Collections: Deukae Vampire Ficfest 2k20





	Fascination

**Author's Note:**

> ngl i wanted this to just be a long oneshot posted all at once but life was like nah so... i hope this prologue/first chapter piques your interest. thank you to laura for putting on this vamp ficfest!
> 
> no warnings for now (i'll add them later if they come up), but there will be the vampy things like blood/biting/death etc, as well as some other mature stuff eventually

Bora doesn’t know much about vampires. She’s heard the rumors, the whispers that weave their way throughout the castle and out into the rest of the kingdom. Only to mutate with time and make their way back to the ears of the castle as more rumors that could be spread anew. It never matters whether they are true, only that the information continues to travel, and with it… the fear.

It was always the fear. The terror of the monsters that lurk in the dark. The facts may not be clear on what exactly those monsters might do, but how everyone should feel about them is certain. Fear them.  _ Destroy them. _

(If only anyone truly knew how). 

Bora doesn’t know much about vampires. But she does know one thing. That the royal family  _ hates _ them. And when the royals hate something, well, that means everyone else does as well. How could they not, when their rulers tell them it’s bad? Dangerous?  _ Evil? _

(And when the king’s soldiers will punish you for disagreeing, but the king doesn’t like to talk about that part as much).

There is one other thing Bora knows about vampires. That despite their many attempts, the royal family has never managed to capture one before.

Until now.

\-----

The first thing she notices about the vampire is just how pretty she is. Petite, even. Not something Bora would expect to think of a monster. It’s almost comical, the vast protections and armored force surrounding the small woman, dwarfing her in size and appearing excessive at best. 

She doesn't look all that different from Bora herself. It's hard for Bora to imagine, as someone who's spent her whole life under lock and key, needing those kind of precautions. Trying to picture herself in the vampire’s place, her small form engulfed by silver restraints - shackles, a muzzle, and wrapped in a massive net of silver chains - and surrounded by tens of guards almost makes her laugh right there in the throne room. It doesn’t seem possible that all of that could be necessary.

But if even a fraction of the rumors about these creatures are true… then all of it might not even be enough. 

The vampire certainly doesn't seem fazed by it - her head held remarkably high for a captive with their face muzzled. She maintains her gaze slightly above the king's throne, like everyone in the room is beneath even her consideration, much less her effort. It's not direct challenging, she's not looking pointedly at others, but confidence. An elegance to the way she holds herself that almost makes Bora wonder if she's only here because  _ she _ wants to be.

Maybe that's just the creature's goal, regardless of how she actually came to be in captivity. To mislead and take back control of the situation.

Either way, it makes Bora feel antsy. Like a cornered prey animal, her fingers twitch with the urge to do something, anything really. She's not sure it's even an urge to get away, so much as just to do anything but sit in this chair, waiting for  _ something _ to happen.

Why is this happening now, after so many unsuccessful capture attempts? What does the vampire want? Is she really a wild, bloodthirsty beast like some think? Or is she a cunning predator? A manipulative master of witchcraft?

Where do the rumors end and the truths begin?

When the vampire finally does make eye contact with someone, it's not the king as she expected. It's Bora.

Bora freezes. 

To her left, she hears the king speaking. No doubt some waffling about the bravery of the soldiers and how great he is for finally capturing one of the “wretched beasts that plague our lands.” Bora wouldn’t care to listen even in the most normal of times, but now she especially can’t bring herself to focus on it. Instead, her eyes stay glued to the deep brown eyes staring back at her. 

It feels like time stops, only for what, Bora doesn’t know. She has no idea if it’s something the vampire is doing to her, or merely her own curiosity and fascination. Regardless, she’s drawn in. Everything is still moving forward around them but it fades from her awareness, and Bora feels as if they could be the only two in the room. 

When the vampire’s eye flicker, a vivid red color overtaking them for a few fractions of a second, Bora can’t stop her sharp inhale of surprise any more than she can bring herself to look away.

She feels something brush against the back of her head, but when she checks with her hand, finds nothing there. Bora knows it’s silly to think, but it almost felt as if it were a brush  _ inside _ the back of her head rather than against it. A slight tingling along her brain that felt less unpleasant than just… strange. Foreign.

It’s only the sharp pain of another foot stomping on her own that finally snaps her out of it. Barely stifling a grunt of pain, Bora turns the other way to glare at the culprit.

“What?” She mouths.

Her sister, Gahyeon, meets her hard gaze with a glare of her own. “Stop looking at it,” she whispers harshly. “It was staring at you, you have no idea what that thing might be trying to do to you.”

One last look at the vampire only shows her that the creature is now completely focused on the king’s speech. Almost pointedly not making eye contact or even acknowledging her presence anymore.

Bora sighs. Perhaps it’s for the best. After everything that’s happened in this one unprecedented evening, some time for her to collect herself will hopefully do her some good.

Closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, Bora too turns to focus on the king. This time determined not to let the vampire get to her anymore.

But the echo of that odd feeling in her head remains, and the vivid red color of the creature’s eyes stays imprinted on her thoughts. 

Bora doesn’t know much about vampires. But something tells her that’s about to change.

\-----

Bora can’t sleep.

It’s been hours since the vampire first arrived at the castle, but Bora can’t seem to get it out of her head. She’d retired to bed almost immediately after the soldiers had taken their captive down to the dungeon, saying she was just tired after all the posturing for the arrival. Neither her sister nor her handmaid seemed to buy her excuse, but at least they let her be.

Hours of tossing and turning later though, she almost wishes they’d stayed. Why is she so hung up on this? She’s not even sure what it is that’s keeping the vampire in her thoughts. Is it just curiosity? She  _ would _ like to know what that strange feeling was all about, and the way those eyes flickered between colors as they stared at her.

Regardless of the reasons, she gives up. It’s obvious Bora won’t be getting sleep anytime soon. A quick peek into her handmaid’s room shows her sleeping peacefully, so before Bora can second guess herself she shrugs on a cloak and sneaks out the door.

\-----

It takes her a long time to make it down to the dungeon, with a couple tense close encounters, but despite that the second guessing only starts once she’s around the corner from the entrance. Luckily the guards on duty aren’t any of the ones she really has problems with, but she still isn’t sure how to approach this. 

Bora doesn’t even know why she’s here, the last thing she needs is rumors starting about her the first day the vampire’s here. She knows if the king finds out about this she’s in deep shit. But she can’t bring herself to walk away. 

Instead she takes a deep breath. She gathers up her confidence until she can feel her posture straightening up and chin lifting up. If this imposing look can clear her a path through the royal court, Bora reasons, then these two guards will be no sweat. A nod to herself at that thought and then she’s rounding the corner. 

“Hey, what are you doing h-” the first guard’s threatening tone is cut off sharply by an elbow to the stomach from the other guard.

Ignoring the accusing glare from his comrade, he turns back to Bora with a much friendlier tone. “Your highness, what brings you here at this hour?” 

Bora lets herself internally enjoy the way the first guard snaps to attention, a quiet apology on his lips. She might hate most of what her birthright has given her in life, but she can appreciate the times like this when it has its uses. 

“Couldn’t sleep. Decided I wanted to come see the beast up close for myself. Make sure it’s enjoying our… finest hospitality.”

The guard opens his mouth to protest but Bora silences him with a pointed look before he can make a sound. The two guards exchange helpless looks before parting to let her through. 

As she passes, her voice drops low. “And speak of this to no one.”

Once she’s well into the dungeon, Bora breathes a sigh of relief. Her cold, royal front drops away as she relaxes again. It’s true she’s a bit nervous for this encounter, but she doubts that her status will mean much to the vampire.

\-----

Bora isn’t sure what she’s expecting to see when she reaches the vampire’s cell, but she knows it isn’t this. She’s again struck by just how pretty she is. From here, she looks just like a regular woman, sitting on the cot with her feet up and arms around her knees as she stares blankly at the wall. 

Trying to map all the tragic stories she’s heard and gruesome aftermaths she’s seen of vampire encounters onto this scene makes her head hurt with the dissonance. Bora doesn’t even realize how long she’s been staring until the silence is broken by the vampire. 

“Don’t tell me you’ve come all the way down here just to look at me, not when there are so many more interesting things we could be doing.”

“I’m not-...” Bora’s breath hitches as the vampire turns and they finally make eye contact again. She clears her throat, looking away for a brief moment to collect herself. “That’s not why I’m here.”

“No? Then to what do I owe the honor of a personal visit from such high royalty?”

_ Great question, _ Bora thinks. If only she even knew why she was here. “I don’t know what ‘high royalty’ you think I am, but if I were then surely I wouldn’t need to explain my reasoning.”

This gets an actual reaction out of the vampire, raising a golden eyebrow at Bora. “‘If?’ Please, I know a member of the royal family when I see one. And how could anyone not know who you are, princess?”

Bora tenses up, her voice tight. “Don’t call me that.”

“Oh? You’d like to speak casually with me already? Now I’m definitely flattered.”

“No, I-...” Bora stops herself before she starts unloading all of her mostly tightly-kept secrets to a vampire of all things. “It’s not that. ‘Princess’ will do just fine.”

The vampire hums in response, but thankfully doesn’t press. It’s isn’t normal for Bora to carry her true feelings so close to the surface like this. But something about tonight, and this creature… she worries all it would take is the right question and things she’s only ever talked about with her sister and handmaid would come spilling out.

“You know princess, if you sneak your way through the servant’s quarters, there’s another way to get down here. One that’s unguarded, as I’m sure they expect only certain staff members to even know about it.”

Bora crosses her arms. “And why would you tell me that? How do you even know about that?”

The vampire smirks. “Now now, princess. You can’t honestly tell me this will be our only meeting? We’re only just getting started.”

Bora stares back defiantly, not wanting to back down. But… she can’t exactly deny it either. Any rebuttals that this is most definitely her only visit die on their way to her lips. 

The vampire senses this and continues. “As I thought. When you do go searching for this passage, I would be suspect of bookshelves.” 

Oh, how Bora wants to wipe that small, self-satisfied smile off of her face.

“And how? You weren’t the only curious wanderer that I’ve met today wanting to catch a glimpse of one of the beasts. Just the only interesting one.”

“The only interesting one?” Bora scoffs. “Good to know vampires are just as obsessed with status as the rest of us I guess.”

“Status? That does certainly add some excitement, princess. But…” The vampire stands up, maintaining eye contact as she steps closer to the bars separating them. The solid silver bars start to emit a low hum as she approaches and grabs onto to them, as if resonating from her presence. 

Bora takes a step back, fearful. She didn’t think the creature could so easily approach the bars meant to repel her. Once again the princess finds herself wondering at the extent of the strength and power this (mostly) innocent looking being holds.

“But I think there’s something else much more enticing about you, princess. And I think I’d like to learn more.”

Her eyes flicker again, flipping rapidly between the deep dark brown and the vibrant red that almost seems to physically draw Bora in. Her body taking an involuntary step forward is enough to wake her up and she decides it’s long been time for her to leave.

Bora tears her eyes away and lets out a shaky breath. “I think we’re done here.”

The vampire makes a disappointed sound, but seems to accept, backing away from the bars to stand in the middle of her cell. 

When Bora risks another glance at her, she’s almost more shocked by the expression on her face than by anything else from tonight. The vampire is… pouting?

_ Cute. _

Bora pictures herself slapping that thought right back out of her head. 

She turns to leave. She knows she’s leaving with more questions than answers, but it’s become painfully obvious to her that she does  _ not _ have the upper hand in these interactions. It’s time to cut her losses and leave… and preferably stay away. Secret way to sneak down here be damned.

“Princess?”

Bora stops in her tracks. So much for her momentary resolve. She doesn’t turn around to look, but does turn her head slightly to indicate she’s listening. 

“Handong.”

Now Bora does turn around, curiosity winning out in the end. “What?”

The vampire’s smile is the biggest one yet. It’s hard not to think of it as sinister despite how infuriatingly pretty it is. “Handong. My name. Please take care of it well, princess.”

This time when Bora moves to leave, she has to hold herself back from running.

**Author's Note:**

> thank you for reading <3


End file.
